Appendix A, Programme Description
Master of Science in Risk Management and Safety Engineering at Lund University, Sweden
Johan Lundin & Robert Jönsson
The Risk Management and Safety Engineering Programme Dept. of Fire Safety Engineering, Lund University
P.O. Box 118, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden Phone: +46 46 222 7360, Fax: +46 46 222 4612
E-mail: johan.lundin@brand.lth.se, robert.jonsson@brand.lth.se
Abstract
The M.Sc. at Lund University is based on a multi-disciplinary approach to risk management and has the objective of providing industry and the public sector with risk managers able to be professionals in the following areas of risk:
• Safety risks
• Health risks
• Ecological/environmental risk
This paper gives a brief presentation of the structure and contents of the programme.
Introduction
Risk analysis and risk management are growing in importance. The reasons for this are the rapid changes in society and social life, economic forces, technological development, and new types of production systems and organizational structures. Information technology ties units together in large complex and interdependent systems with short time constants, allowing little or no time for the correction of mistakes or for counteracting effects due to unforeseen circumstances. Boundaries between authorities are often vague. This is often also the case in company subsystems, and all the way up to the global scale. The concentration of people, dangerous chemicals, energy, information and other values is increasing, which may consid-erably increase the effects of accidents. There are strong forces driving humanity and nature, as well as organizations and individuals, toward a world of “produced uncertainty and organ-ized irresponsibility”. Counter-forces have to be found and used as soon as possible.
T h e R i s k M a n a g e m e n t a n d S a f e t y E n g i n e e r i n g P r o g r a m m e J o h a n L u n d i n
It will rarely be possible to eliminate risks entirely. All life involves some risk, and any inno-vation brings risk as well as reward – so the priority must be to manage risks better. We need to do more to anticipate risks, so that there are fewer unnecessary and costly crises, like BSE or failed IT contracts, and to ensure that risk management is an integral part of all delivery plans. But we also need to be sure that innovations are not blocked by red tape and risk aver-sion, and that there is a proper balance between the responsibilities of government and the responsibilities of the individual. Risk managers will always have to make decisions under uncertainty with limited resources at hand.
Programme objectives
To meet up to the present and future demands of risk management, Lund University started a two-year engineering programme leading to a Master of Science in Risk Management and Safety Engineering in 2001. The programme places great emphasis on acquiring knowledge on the different threats and risks present in society, during both normal activities and acci-dents. The programme should, in particular, offer students the conditions to learn and apply risk analysis as a systematic tool:
• To identify and assess risks.
• To implement measures to reduce risks with the objective of preventing, or at least limiting, injury to humans, and damage to the environment or property.
• Based on the objectives of organizations and the requirements of society, to formu-late and work with management systems, especially in the areas of safety, health and the environment so as to establish a low level of risk with regard to finance and sus-tainable development.
The main focus, with emphasis on safety, health and the environment, will be on accidents defined as undesirable incidents having an adverse effect on people, the environment, equip-ment, property and business. These incidents are usually of short duration, are unintentional, and do not form part of the normal function of the system.
Other effects on health and the environment will also be considered, where the exposure is long-term in character and is a result of the normal function of a system, or of a normal life-style.
In particular, engineering education should provide the basis for the application of risk analy-sis as a systematic work process according to Figure 1 in the following areas:
• Systematic collection and evaluation of risks and the ability to initiate measures to reduce risks in order to avoid injury to humans and damage to the environment or to property.
• To create processes, products, and working environments with consideration for the requirements of organizations and society regarding safety, the environment, health, conservation of resources, and economy.
The education should also increase the depth and breadth of knowledge, and create the
capa-bility of communicating and collaborating with many different categories of technical and
Appendix A, Programme Description
non-technical individuals, as well as being able to work in risk management on the local, re-gional, national and international scale.
Figure 1. Flow chart for risk management [2, 3].
Programme structure and content
The programme consists of compulsory courses, elective courses, and senior thesis (M.Sc.
dissertations), see Figure 2. The compulsory course block covers 40 credits (one year full-time studies). This block contains basic courses in the area of risk management, which provide the basis for risk analysis, risk assessment and the development of risk-reducing measures. The compulsory block starts with courses in basic methods and techniques in both business administration and engineering. The basic knowledge obtained is then employed in the next set of courses, which are more applied. The forms of teaching are both traditional, with lectures, and project based.
In the end of the first year the students can start to extend and specialize their training knowledge through elective courses and a senior thesis, to a large extent according to their own interests. Their choice of elective courses should lead to both a broadening and deepening of their knowledge, such that they are capable of taking responsibility for the development of new techniques and methods.
Risk Analysis
• Scope definition
• Hazard identification
• Risk estimation
Risk Evaluation
• Risk tolerability decisions
• Analysis of options
Risk Reduction/Control
• Decision Making
• Implementation
• Monetering
Ri s k M a na ge ment Ri sk A s sessment
Figure 2. Content of the Master of Science Programme in Risk Management and Safety Engineering.
The programme is largely based on students themselves selecting the elective courses in order to create a personal profile and specializing in one of the areas of safety, health and the envi-ronment. This is based on trends in society towards a growing importance of individual responsibility in terms of education, especially regarding flexibility and choice. It is also important to recognize the different levels of risk management maturity in different engineering disciplines. The approaches taken in different industry sectors are far from harmonized [4]. It is impossible to cover all aspects of risk management and safety engineering in a master’s programme, but it should provide the basis from which an overall view of how risks affect organizations can be applied. Facility in assimilating new knowledge is therefore an important quality, as well as being able to communicate this knowledge to others.
Description of optional courses
Risk Analysis Methods
(Swedish credits: 10, ECTS credits: 15)
Upon completion of the course, the student should be able to provide support in risk analysis for groups working with risk management. In the field of safety, the student should be able to carry out a quantitative risk analysis for an industrial plant. In the fields of health and envi-ronment, it should be possible for the student to perform a danger analysis. The analysis methods with which the student should be familiar range from qualitative and semi-quantita-tive to quantitasemi-quantita-tive risk analysis methods. The management of uncertainty plays a central role and is an important part of the course. Methods for the quality assurance of models and input data with regard to analysis will be dealt with.
Senior Thesis
Elective Courses
Compulsory Courses
Basic Engineering Courses
Master of Science in Risk Management and Safety Engineering Compulsory Courses 40 credits
Managerial Economics 5 cr.
Risk Management Processes 5 cr.
Statistical Methods for Safety Analysis 5 cr.
Economic Models for Risk Management 5 cr.
Safety, Health and Environmental Law 5 cr.
Risk Analysis Methods 10 cr.
People, Technology, Organisation and Risk Management 5 cr.
20 credits 20 credits
40 credits
100 credits